The Missed Adventure
by LoaTurtle00
Summary: Takes place in "The Chipmunk Adventure", after the Chipettes rescued the Chipmunks from being sacrificed in Fiji. Alvin and Brittany get a chance to talk about the trip. Even though the movie came out in 1987, some references are made to technology, events, and other things that didn't exist until the 21st century.
1. Prologue

**The Missed Adventure**

 **About This Story:** Takes place in "The Chipmunk Adventure", after the Chipettes rescued the Chipmunks from being sacrificed in Fiji. Even though the movie came out in 1987, some references are made to technology, events, and other things that didn't exist until the 21st century. Just for consistency, I'm going to write it (and imagine it) as if "The Chipmunk Adventure" happened in my current favorite upgraded and present Chipmunk "universe" (which is the 2015 Nickelodeon cartoon) - "The Chipmunk Adventure 2.0", if you will. Age-wise, I'll say they are 8 years old. I don't own any part of the Chipmunk franchise, just borrowing them from Nickelodeon, Janice Karman,  & Ross Bagdasarian, their family, & their company.

 **About This Chapter:** Rated G-PG

 **Pairings:** Alvin/Brittany

* * *

 **Prologue**

"Now what?"

Brittany could sense the urgency in Eleanor's big aqua-green eyes staring up at her. Without breaking her concentration or her hold on the rope, Brittany directed, "Ellie, you and I will try pulling the boys up here with the rope. Jeanette, you steer the balloon so we can put some distance between us and that tribe of natives. Try to find a safe place to land."

Her sisters both nodded and complied.

Eleanor shook her head and groaned in exasperation, "Britt, I really don't know how long I can keep pulling this rope. I can't tell from here if we're pulling the boys any closer to the balloon basket or not."

"It's OK as long as they aren't slipping away." She looked over the railing of the basket to check on the Chipmunk trio dangling from the end of the rope. They were still tied to individual stakes with their hands behind them. The only recognizable thing about them from the girls' vantage point now was Alvin's red cap. Their three little heads were gazing in all different directions, trying to take in everything happening around them.

"ARE YOU GUYS OK?" Eleanor shouted over the railing, nearly startling Brittany, just a few inches away.

The boys' faces all turned upward in unison like a band of meerkats. But Brittany and Eleanor couldn't tell from that angle and thirty feet away whether or not the brothers were smiling.

"Still here, and still alive!" They heard Simon's voice.

"Girls! It's you!" Alvin sounded relieved.

"Hi, Eleanor!" Theodore squealed.

Eleanor waved back, "Hi, Theodore!"

Brittany explained to them, "We're gonna try to find a place to land so we can untie you guys and stuff. Just hang tight for now."

"OK!" The brothers called out in unison.

After at least fifteen minutes, Jeanette announced, "Look! I think I found a clearing where we can land, it's next to a freshwater stream too small for crocodiles. And it's surrounded by some large rocks, so it should be safe enough."

It wasn't long before Jeanette was able to land the balloon while Brittany and Eleanor ensured that the boys' stakes landed safely. The three stakes almost made a tripod or the framework for a teepee.

Miniature but maternal Eleanor was the first Chipette to reach the boys, armed with her pocket knife and first aid kit. Naturally she chose to free Theodore first.

"Thank you, Eleanor!" He hugged her as soon as he was free. "That's a great knife. How long have you had that? I mean, Dave would never let me have a knife."

"I got it on our stopover in Switzerland. That and this first aid kit." She explained while hugging him back. "But let me free your brothers, first, then we'll talk about our other travels."

Simon was next. "Eleanor, thank you so much." He gave her a quick hug of gratitude, along with a small pat on the head. Eleanor used to hate it when he did this, but didn't mind so much now. She used to think he was patronizing her as the youngest in the group, but he really just wasn't the hugger that Theodore was, and it was just easier for him to pat her and Theodore on the head due to the height difference. Once Theodore explained this to her, it made enough sense. And she would now welcome it as affection from a big brother, which Simon was like to her.

"Simon! You're OK!" Jeanette seemed to come out of nowhere to embrace him.

"Uh, Jeanette..." Stammered Simon. "It's great to see you." He returned the hug, almost shy about it at first, but then realized he had nothing to fear.

"And how did I know you'd free me last, Eleanor?" Alvin sarcastically said as Eleanor cut his bonds. "Did Brittany put you up to this?"

"Naw, just a happy coincidence to save the best for last." Eleanor laughed.

He gave her a friendly and grateful hug, "Thanks, Ellie. I think my brothers deserved to be saved first, so you made the right call." He patted and rubbed her shoulder as she let go.

"Alvin! Thank goodness you're OK!" Brittany ambush-hugged Alvin from behind.

Alvin had a shocked look on his face at his rival's sudden friendliness and show of affection, but turned around so he could return the hug. He figured it was better sportsmanship, since she had now not only won the balloon race but saved his life and the lives of his brothers. Time seemed to stand still as the two "frenemies" collapsed into each other's embrace.

"Ah-HEM." Simon's fake cough got their attention.

"Not that we don't appreciate that you guys are being civil toward each other," Jeanette began, "But remember, Brittany, we have something very important to tell the guys."

"Oh, right." Brittany and Alvin said in unison while letting go of each other. They were almost avoiding eye contact with with each other.

Alvin glanced downward at his toes, then looked in the opposite of Brittany's direction with his eyes squeezed shut.

"Alvin, are you blushing?" Simon asked as Theodore giggled.

Alvin groaned. "Gah! I just realized that this is the most naked I've been while hugging Brittany."

"What are you talking about, Alvin?" Brittany scoffed. "You have pool parties at your house, and we've spent days at the beach wearing our bathing suits all day. How is this really any different?"

Everyone was laughing as Alvin sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, staring at the ground in front of them. "Yeah, but it's not like I usually hug people while I'm only in my trunks. I have boundaries, ya know."

Brittany playfully, but gently slapped his shoulder. "Whatever, Alvin. It's not like anyone's trying to touch your 'bathing suit area', or anything like that."

Jeanette spoke up once the others calmed their laughter. "Guys, we still need to tell you something very big and important about the balloon race."

"Should we set up camp for the night, first?" Simon asked.

Eleanor nodded, "I think it might be better to tell them this news while we're all sitting down around a nice campfire or something."

"OK." Everyone agreed. They all separated to set up camp in a teamwork fashion.


	2. That Explains A Lot

**The Missed Adventure**

 **About This Story:** Takes place in "The Chipmunk Adventure", after the Chipettes rescued the Chipmunks from being sacrificed in Fiji. Alvin and Brittany get a chance to talk about the trip. Even though the movie came out in 1987, some references are made to technology, events, and other things that didn't exist until the 21st century. Just for consistency, I'm going to write it (and imagine it) as if "The Chipmunk Adventure" happened in my current favorite upgraded and present Chipmunk "universe" (which is the 2015 Nickelodeon cartoon) - "The Chipmunk Adventure 2.0", if you will. Age-wise, I'll say they are 8 years old. I don't own any part of the Chipmunk franchise, just borrowing them from Nickelodeon, Janice Karman,  & Ross Bagdasarian, their family, & their company.

 **About This Chapter:** Rated G-PG

 **Pairings:** Alvin/Brittany

* * *

 **That Explains A Lot**

It wasn't long before the six chipmunk friends had a nice campfire going just outside the stakes, which they had turned into a teepee-style tent. Eleanor had also found some canned veggies she was cooking for breakfast.

Simon spoke up, "First of all, thank you, girls, for saving our lives back there. I think I speak for all of my brothers in saying that you are now the rightful winners of this race. Since we lost our balloon, we're practically disqualified."

"What were you going to tell us?" Theodore asked around a mouthful of trail mix.

"Well," began Jeanette, "Basically this whole race is a hoax. We're honestly not winning anything any more than you guys are."

The guys all stared at her open-mouthed in disbelief.

Brittany brought back some of the dolls from the balloon, one of herself and the other of Alvin. "Take a look at this." She moved back the loose fabric on the doll of herself to expose the contraband diamonds underneath. She also held open the rip in the back of the Alvin doll to expose the cash.

The Chipmunks all continued to stare. Alvin's gaze fell to the ground, while Theodore cast a questioning look at Simon.

Simon looked back at Jeanette to say, "I had a feeling something was amiss about this whole race, and I wanted to tell you about it when we last saw each other back in Athens. But that was before our two diva siblings so rudely interrupted us." With the last point, he elbowed Alvin.

"Oww, Simon!" Alvin complained at first, but then corrected himself when he saw that Simon and Jeanette were still glaring at him. "I mean, I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation back in Athens. If I had just let the two of you talk, we could've teamed up sooner, and we would've been dressed a little differently by now."

"And I'm sorry, too." Brittany patted Jeanette on the shoulder. "I didn't mean to be such a diva while you were just trying to have an honest, grown-up conversation with Simon. I suppose I should've just let Alvin have that one stupid apple, while I helped myself to another apple in that box."

Alvin laughed, "If it makes you feel better, Britt, when I bit into that apple later that night, there was half a worm in it." He made a disgusted face.

"Gross!" Brittany laughed and mirrored Alvin's disgusted face.

Simon gave another fake cough to circle their attention back to the balloon race. "So, Jeanette, you are basically saying that this whole balloon race was really just a front for a diamond smuggling ring? And all of the suspicious and creepy guys we have seen here and there are either working for the Furschtiens, or trying to expose them?"

Jeanette thought for a moment, "Now that I think about it that way, it makes sense."

"How did you discover that the dolls were full of diamonds or cash, not just doll stuffing?" Simon asked.

"Well, funny story," Jeanette began, "We were almost jumped in Antarctica by some hitchhikers who tried to get on our balloon. That's when one of the 'creepy guys' tried to wrestle a doll away from Brittany, but accidentally tore the arm off the doll, and diamonds spilled all over the place. The guys left us alone after that, thankfully."

"I didn't know Antarctica was on your list of drop-offs." Simon looked surprised.

"It wasn't," Eleanor interrupted, "We took a detour because a baby penguin given to us in Egypt was getting sick. We decided we couldn't win the race while letting a baby penguin die, so we returned him back to his family."

"Awww, a baby penguin?" Theodore asked. "Any pictures of him?"

"Yeah! Of course!" Eleanor got out her phone and showed Theodore the pics of the baby penguin. "He kinda looked like you, a little, except he had a beak instead of a chipmunk nose. But I thought he had your puppy-dog brown eyes, so I almost wanted to call him 'Theodore, Junior'. But Jeanette talked to him, like she can talk to other animals, and she found out his real name was Pablo."

Alvin and Simon glanced over their shoulders to see the pictures of the penguin.

"Awww, how cute!" Alvin squeaked in a baby voice. "He does look like Teddy-Boy. Or, if Teddy-Boy and Ellie had a kid someday, he would probably look something like that."

"Alvin!" Simon muttered while elbowing his impetuous brother.

At this, Eleanor and Theodore gave each other a puzzled look, then averted their eye contact. They were both slightly blushing at the thought of being life-mates and having a family someday. Even though they were best friends now, and had been since Kindergarten, they still didn't quite think of each other as a romantic couple. But they laughed anyway at Alvin's joke in order to ease the mutual awkwardness.

"Anyways..." Simon sighed, taking the attention off the relationship status of the "Theo-nor" couple. "Why would someone in Egypt give a baby penguin as a gift? That seems like an unusual custom."

Jeanette explained, "While in Cairo, we were captured, and held captive in the pharaoh's would-be harem. That is, if he weren't also eight years old. He wanted to start his harem with Brittany, and possibly Eleanor and myself, but said he could wait ten years for the wedding. And we were given Egyptian makeovers, and the live baby penguin as an engagement present."

"Huh?" Simon shrugged. "And I thought you girls were just dressed like genies, since you saved our lives and made our wishes come true." He winked at Jeanette with a smirk.

Jeanette covered her mouth and giggled, "Oh, Simon, you're so cute when you're being witty."

Theodore patted his belly. "Well, you girls have certainly made my wishes come true since saving our lives. I mean, I've gone this whole trip without having a decent meal. When that tribe kidnapped me, I was scared at first, but then they started feeding me great food and treating me like a prince."

Simon interjected, "Yeah, it's a humbling experience to be told that the only way you can continue to live is as a slave for your baby brother." He patted Theodore on the shoulder to show that there were no hard feelings about it.

Theodore smiled at Simon before continuing, "But who knew they were just fattening me up to sacrifice me to the crocodiles? But I just wanna say, girls, thanks for saving our lives, and Eleanor, thanks for the delicious food. How'd you know I was gonna be hungry?"

"Lucky guess." Eleanor smiled and patted Theodore's hand. "And I kinda missed having you around, you know, someone else who appreciates good food like I do."

Theodore smiled back at her before yawning. "I didn't realize just how sleepy I am."

Simon gave Theodore another pat on the back, "Why don't you go take a nap in the tent for a while?" He stifled a yawn of his own. "I actually might join you in there."

"We're coming, too." Jeanette and Eleanor yawned in unison while following Simon and Theodore into the tent.

Simon poked his head out of the tent. "Alvin, Brittany, are you guys coming?"

Alvin looked over at Brittany, but shrugged and shook his head. "I'll keep watch while you guys sleep." He poked the fire with a stick.

Brittany shrugged, "I feel too wide-awake after the adrenaline rush. But maybe later."

"Suit yourselves." Simon waved before heading back inside the tent.

* * *

 **A/N:** I was going out on a limb with the part about them knowing each other since Kindergarten, I realize that may deviate from the AATC Canon. My expertise is more in "NinjaTurtle-ology" rather than "Chipmunk-ology". My hypothesized relative age-order may also be off, since I've seen much debate on whether Simon or Alvin is older, or whether Brittany or Jeanette is older. I've come to my own conclusion that the relative age-order for the 6 of them is depicted as the numbers on their soccer jerseys in the Nick cartoon episode "Mutiny" (1. Simon, 2. Jeanette, 3. Brittany, 4. Alvin, 5. Theodore, 6. Eleanor). That seemed to be the logical explanation as to why Alvin was #4 and not #1 (since he's practically the lead for everything else in the group). Also, Simon just seems like the responsible, serious, and level-headed big brother of the group (reminds me of Leonardo of the TMNT), who is usually cleaning up Alvin's rash mistakes (Raphael of the TMNT comes to mind). And I've usually seen Brittany running to Jeanette when she feels threatened (not necessarily just in "The Chipmunk Adventure", but in other episodes) like many people run to their mommy. Jeanette just seems like the patient, understanding, and comforting big sister (like Donatello of the TMNT), even though Brittany is more "the boss" of the Chipettes.


	3. A Chance To Talk

**The Missed Adventure**

 **About This Story:** Takes place in "The Chipmunk Adventure", after the Chipettes rescued the Chipmunks from being sacrificed in Fiji. Alvin and Brittany get a chance to talk about the trip. Even though the movie came out in 1987, some references are made to technology, events, and other things that didn't exist until the 21st century. Just for consistency, I'm going to write it (and imagine it) as if "The Chipmunk Adventure" happened in my current favorite upgraded and present Chipmunk "universe" (which is the 2015 Nickelodeon cartoon) - "The Chipmunk Adventure 2.0", if you will. Age-wise, I'll say they are 8 years old. I don't own any part of the Chipmunk franchise, just borrowing them from Nickelodeon, Janice Karman,  & Ross Bagdasarian, their family, & their company.

 **About This Chapter:** Rated PG, since there is mention of a mild injury involving blood, and some allusions to courser language.

 **Pairings:** Alvin/Brittany

* * *

 **A Chance To Talk**

Brittany just sat there silently watching the fire. She watched as Alvin walked over to the balloon basket in silence to pull out some of the spears that were lodged in the basket. She also realized it was the longest she had spent alone with Alvin while he wasn't talking, so it was kinda eerie.

He walked back over to the campfire with his armful of spears, and sat in the spot he had earlier vacated across the flames from Brittany. He extended a spear out to her. "Would you like one?"

"Huh?" Brittany just looked at Alvin.

Alvin shrugged, "You know, in case we need to defend ourselves, if those natives come after us." He started sharpening the tips against the rocks surrounding the campfire. His concentration was clearly on the spearheads, and he seemed so serious.

"OK." Brittany picked up the offered spear, examining it for a moment. She then started giggling.

"What?" Alvin stated without smiling or even looking up.

Brittany jabbed the spear into the air, "Check it out, Alvin..." Once he glanced up, she continued, "I'm 'Brittany Spears'! Ha, ha!"

Alvin just slightly chuckled and shook his head. At least that made him smile for a few seconds, before he returned to being serious and silent, almost broody."

"Alvin, are you OK?" Brittany asked, concerned.

"Why would I not be OK?" He replied without looking up. "You just saved my life, and I'm still alive. Isn't that what matters?" He actually glanced over at Brittany at the last question, to see the concern in her bright blue eyes. His gaze fell to the ground, and he corrected himself, "Sorry if that response seemed kinda short-tempered."

"Yeah..." Began Brittany. "We've known each other since Kindergarten, Alvin. I know you and I haven't always been the best of friends, but I don't think I've ever seen you like this. It's like, 'Who are you, and what have you done with Alvin?' I don't know, maybe we're both just tired right now, but you just don't seem like your usual _squirrelly_ self."

Alvin finally smiled, and rolled his eyes in mock outrage. "Britt, I find that last statement very offensive as I am a _chipmunk_ and not a _squirrel_."

Brittany giggled.

In order to add more dramatic effect, Alvin stomped his feet and waved his fists in the air, accidentally knocking over some spears that he had already sharpened. One of them mildly lacerated his right forearm in the falling process. "Oww!" He cried out in pain.

Brittany immediately stopped her laughing. "Oh, Alvin! Let me get the first aid kit." She went into a "mom mode" she didn't know she even possessed, scrambling to find the first aid kit that Eleanor had almost put away, wetting a washcloth with some bottled water and disinfectant. She was soon tenderly attending Alvin's wound.

Once Alvin's arm was properly bandaged, he heaved a sigh of relief. "Wow. I've never seen that side of you before, Britt. I guess I always thought you were too afraid of blood to do anything like that. How did you know how to do all that?"

"I guess I've learned some of it from babysitting." Brittany gently stroked Alvin's newly bandaged forearm. "And my sisters occasionally teach me a thing or two. Eleanor would've been proud of me, and Jeanette would probably say that you might still want a tetanus shot when we get back."

"Yes, Miss Nurse Brittany." Alvin laughed. Then he stopped and smiled at her, now sitting beside him, "Thanks, Britt, you did great. I'm really impressed. Not only that you _could_ do that, but that you _would_ do that. Like you said earlier, we haven't always been the best of friends. But that's the second time you've helped me tonight."

"You're very welcome, Alvin." Brittany patted him on the shoulder. "And now that it's just the two of us, not trying to one-up each other, would you mind talking friend-to-friend? I mean, you've seemed so quiet here, while in Athens you were the competitive bad-boy that I remember. Is it because you realize the competition is bogus? Or is something else on your mind? That is, if you don't mind me asking."

Alvin sighed and stared at the campfire. "No, I don't mind you asking me about this. You know how competitive I can be, and how Alvin Seville always likes to be the champion, the hero. I guess it was just more humbling to me than I thought, since I not only lost the race to you - if there were still a race, anyways - but you saved my life, and the lives of my brothers. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to you especially for that. I guess in some ways I feel like the world revolves less around me than I act like it does sometimes. I'm just not the hero who rescues the damsel in distress I thought I was, especially if the damsel is rescuing me. I'm probably boring you by now, Britt."

"Not at all." Brittany shook her head empathetically. "And of course the world revolves less around you, since it revolves more around me."

Alvin had to laugh at her remark.

"I'm kidding, Alvin." She sighed. "Remember when we first made friends back in Kindergarten? I know back then we would sometimes pretend I was the princess and you were my knight in shining armor. But that wasn't far from the truth. You and your brothers actually saved the lives of myself and my sisters. Our other manager and guardian didn't love us like Dave. He even locked us in a cage." She shuddered remembering this. "You were definitely the hero the time you helped us out of that cage. And now, we have a better life with Dave. I know I act like I don't like you most of the time, and there are even sometimes when I actually convince myself that I hate you, but the truth is that you never stopped being that hero to me." She placed a hand on his right shoulder. "Alvin, you don't have to keep being _the_ hero for the rest of the world in order for me to still think of you as _my_ hero."

"Brittany, wow! That was just beautiful." Alvin stammered. He placed his left hand on top of Brittany's hand on his shoulder. "Much like you don't always have to keep trying to be _the_ princess of everything, because you're already _my_ princess. And I'll keep rescuing you, as I'm your knight in charming iron - er, knight in sharming arnamor - uh, as your _hero_."

"Awww," Brittany giggled, "Look at us being all sweet to each other. Wouldn't our siblings be impressed?"

Alvin sighed, "I'm sure they would. But that makes me think of something else that's on my mind." He looked at the flames in the campfire again.

"And what's that?" Brittany asked.

Alvin continued, "Well, Simon hasn't been too crazy about me dragging him into this race from the beginning. He's been even more upset with me since I talked Theodore into tricking Miss Miller into letting us go on this trip. And all because I hate to lose, especially to you of all people, I nearly got all three of us killed. Sometimes I can't help but wonder if Simon wants to kill me, like a real 'Cain-and-Abel' situation."

Brittany chuckled, "I could talk to him later, to see if he would forgive you for that. But if my sisters can forgive me for being a real jerk to them sometimes, I'm sure your brothers still love you and would easily forgive you. They all have big hearts, you know. And you aren't the only one who has been learning a hard lesson in humility during this whole trip."

"Oh yeah?" Alvin glanced over at her.

"Yeah," Brittany nodded, "In Bermuda, my sisters actually saved me from getting eaten by a great white shark, I kid you not." When she saw Alvin's jaw drop, she continued, "My scuba tank was stuck in its mouth, and they pulled me away without a scratch, sharing their air with me on the way up. It was one of the most terrifying moments of my life! But they were so amazing at saving me, I realized I'm so lucky to have the best sisters ever! I hope I can be at least half the sister to them that they are to me. As much as my sisters fight _with_ me, I know they'll fight _for_ me any day." She gently nudged Alvin. "And I know your brothers feel the same about you."

Alvin gasped, "Sounds like my competitive streak almost got you killed, too. I'm sorry, Brittany."

She laughed, "Trust me, Alvin, I can be as much of an alpha-dog as you can. It wasn't just _your_ competitive streak this time. I contributed plenty of it, myself. My sisters have even said in front of me that I am 'difficult', 'demanding', 'high-maintenance', and that I throw fits when I 'don't get my way'. It wasn't easy for me to hear, even though they are mostly right. I don't like to lose, either."

"Ouch." Alvin grimaced. "I didn't realize your sisters would actually tell you off like that to your face."

"Well..." Brittany chuckled awkwardly, "In the most recent time they said all of this, they were trying to talk the pharaoh out of marrying me. Even though it sounded so mean at the time, raking me over the coals seemed like the best way they could try to save me - again. I realize that not only do they love me, but they tough-love me. I don't know how they can keep on loving me, even when that 'B' on my favorite sweater doesn't stand for 'Brittany' as much as it stands for...something that rhymes with 'witch'."

Alvin laughed. "I guess my fear of Simon trying to kill me is completely as bogus as this balloon race. If he really wanted to kill me, he's smart enough he would've done it by now, and he could make it look like an accident. Both of my brothers do a great deal of putting up with me that it could even be called love. And I'm floored by how they can still love me even when the 'A' on most of my other clothes doesn't stand for 'Alvin' as much as it stands for...something that ends in '-hole'."

Brittany giggled, "I get the picture. Glad to see you are feeling better, at least emotionally."

Alvin nervously rubbed the back of his neck with his left hand, but managed to smile. "Yeah, thanks, Britt. This 'friend-to-friend talk' has really helped."

"But..." Prodded Brittany, "Is there something else?"

Alvin paused for a moment, staring at the campfire. He then looked back over at Brittany. "It's just that... I realize I never really congratulated you for getting engaged. So, congrats!"

"What?" She looked shocked. "Oh, thanks, I guess. But I don't think it's gonna work out."

"Really? What's this 'pharaoh' like? And you don't wanna be 'Mrs Pharaoh'? I'm a little surprised you would turn down a chance to be queen of your own country." He winked at her.

Brittany laughed, "I'm already 'Queen Of The World', so being 'Queen Of The Nile' would be more like a demotion. Ha! I never really considered that at best, if anything happened to the pharaoh, I would be queen. But it seemed more like I was just gonna be one of the pharaoh's wives in his harem. I wouldn't want to share the throne - or a husband, for that matter - with anyone. Come to think of it, he really wasn't my type. Even though he was super-rich and powerful..." She made a sideways-glance at Alvin, who was sighing and looking at the campfire. "...He was no rock star."

Alvin's eyes widened at this. He looked over at Brittany, who was sending him a quick wink while drinking out of a water bottle. He chuckled to himself while she was getting a drink.

When she finished, she held out and lightly jostled her bottle. "Thirsty?"

"A little, I guess." He shrugged.

* * *

 **A/N:** I mentioned the Kindergarten thing again, along with the fact that the Chipette's former manager locked them in a cage (like Ian Hawke did in "The Squeakquel"). Maybe I should write another fanfic about that. Sorry if this chapter is full of cheap clichés. The one about "...sisters fighting _with_ me...they'll fight _for_ me..."? Paraphrased from the 2003-ish movie "Cheaper By The Dozen", where Hillary Duff's character Loraine says something similar about her younger sister Sarah. And in one part when Alvin says, "Oh yeah?" Then Brittany says, "Yeah" was kinda playing with the fact that they had a similar argument at the end of the movie, before Dave had a "long talk" with them. And the "knight in sharming iron..." is from the 2015 Nick cartoon episode "Mister Manners".

I think it's cute how it's obvious that Alvin and Brittany care about each other (as friends, and as "more–than-friends") more than either cares to admit, and they end up fighting like brother and sister (or sometimes like an old married couple). But then they can surprise everyone by setting their rivalry aside and really being there for each other (like in "Chipwrecked", after they built the shelter). If Alvin and Brittany can work things out, then maybe there is hope for the Middle East. And I believe that the only clear-cut winner in the "rock-off" of "The Chipmunk Adventure" (when they sang "The Girls And Boys Of Rock-N-Roll") was really the "Alvittany" fans, since making it a friendly competition was what it took to make Alvin and Brittany dance together!


	4. Sleepless In Fiji

**The Missed Adventure**

 **About This Story:** Takes place in "The Chipmunk Adventure", after the Chipettes rescued the Chipmunks from being sacrificed in Fiji. Alvin and Brittany get a chance to talk about the trip. Even though the movie came out in 1987, some references are made to technology, events, and other things that didn't exist until the 21st century. Just for consistency, I'm going to write it (and imagine it) as if "The Chipmunk Adventure" happened in my current favorite upgraded and present Chipmunk "universe" (which is the 2015 Nickelodeon cartoon) - "The Chipmunk Adventure 2.0", if you will. Age-wise, I'll say they are 8 years old. I don't own any part of the Chipmunk franchise, just borrowing them from Nickelodeon, Janice Karman,  & Ross Bagdasarian, their family, & their company.

 **About This Chapter:** Rated PG, probably the most "iffy" chapter of this story, that may even dip it's toes a little into the PG-13 waters. Contains bathroom/bodily-function humor. I don't want to spoil anything, but some of the conversations  & descriptions are a bit grown-up for 8 year olds (but in some ways the Chipmunks are more precocious than I was at 8).

 **Pairings:** Alvin/Brittany

* * *

 **Sleepless In Fiji**

Alvin and Brittany sat back down in their seats by the campfire after retrieving some water bottles and some baggies of snacks. They also had some of the dolls that came with the boys, just to open a couple of them and confirm that this time the Chipmunk dolls contained diamonds and the Chipette dolls contained cash.

"Look, Brittany - " Alvin had picked up the doll of Simon, which was cut in the back to expose the diamonds. He held the doll so that he was in a sitting position. "Hi, I'm Simon. I'm so up-tight that I think I seriously need some prune juice." He then made a straining and grunting noise, followed by a farting noise as a diamond fell out of the back of the doll. He then made the Simon doll heave a big sigh of relief. "Whew! Alvin sure tore me a new one, didn't he?"

Brittany tried to stifle her laughter, but was not doing a very good job. She lightly slapped his arm, "Alvin, stop! You're gonna wake up the others. And you know that our 'foodie' siblings will be hungry once they wake up, and we'll have to share our snacks." The two of them paused quietly and looked over towards the tent for a few moments.

Alvin looked back at Brittany. "I think they are still sleeping, or we would've heard something by now. I mean, Theo even has a bell around his neck."

Brittany nodded, "Yeah. I checked on them earlier, just peeked into the tent. All four of them were still sleeping, kinda huddled together, since there isn't a lot of room. It was cute, so I even got a picture of it."

She pulled out her phone to show Alvin. In the picture, the sisters were on the left side of the door sharing a blanket, and the brothers were on the right side of the door sharing the excess of Theodore's robe as a blanket. All four of their heads were in the middle to where Simon and Jeanette were sharing different sides of one pillow, and Theodore and Eleanor were sharing different sides of another pillow. Simon was protectively sleeping closest to the door.

"Awww! That is so cute!" Alvin smiled. "It doesn't look like there's any room left for us to join them."

"I don't mind staying out here by the fire, under the stars that are left." Brittany glanced up at the sky, which looked like it would dawn within a few moments.

Alvin followed her gaze. "Would it be alright if we slept in past noon, today? That is, once you and I actually fall asleep?"

"Sounds good to me." Brittany sighed, sounding sleepy. She then perked up, "But I've actually had a great time staying up with you."

"Yeah, this has been fun." Alvin nodded in agreement. His eyes then widened as he realized Brittany's left hand had brushed across his right hand.

Her hand continued to brush upward across his right forearm. "How is your arm, by the way?"

Alvin released a breath he wasn't even aware he was holding, somewhat relieved she was just checking on his injury, still not sure whether or not holding hands was for them at the moment. "OK, I guess." He managed to nod. "Thanks for asking." He used his left hand to lightly stroke the top of Brittany's left hand, but he seemed to be examining her hand rather than holding it.

"What?" Brittany gave him a puzzled look.

Alvin continued to stare at the back of her hand. He then shook his head, "I was just thinking...like Beyoncé says, 'If Pharaoh liked it, he should've put a ring on it'. What an idiot for ever letting a girl like you get away!"

"Seriously, Alvin?" Brittany chuckled. "That's so sweet of you! Considering how we usually get along, I thought you would say that he really dodged a bullet."

"What? Who, me?" Alvin feigned innocence. "No. Why would you even think - oh, never mind." As Brittany laughed, he continued in a more down-to-earth tone, "It's just that...if I were that lucky pharaoh who could land a girl like you, I'd give you a real ring, especially if I could easily afford one."

"Ha! I wouldn't say he really 'landed' me, since I escaped - and I wasn't even playing hard-to-get, either. He never even asked, he just said that in ten years he would make me one of his wives. And I _never_ said yes." Brittany stated.

"Well..." Alvin looked around the ground at their feet before picking up the diamond that fell out of the Simon doll and holding it up to Brittany's left ring finger. "Now, I'm not trying to get engaged right now - especially since we haven't been dating, or even friends who can put up with each other for long periods of time, but maybe we could save this to put in a nice setting, you know, in case someday maybe twenty or thirty years from now - "

Brittany interrupted him. "Alvin, this is practically a 'blood diamond' that we shouldn't even have! It's already stolen, and two wrongs don't make a right." She sighed, looking at it. "Too bad, though, it is pretty, and looks great on my finger. It would make a nice memento of this whole trip." Giggling, she added, "Even though the Simon doll pooped it out earlier. How romantic is that?"

Alvin laughed. "I mean, we're only eight! I don't wanna be thinking about things like marriage, or weddings, or engagement rings for like, twenty or thirty years. And I could even go ten years before even thinking about romance or dating anyone." He looked over at Brittany to make sure he wasn't hurting her feelings, since he still felt indebted to her for saving his life. He saw that she was listening indifferently, so he gently nudged her. "But everyone knows that I'm bad at math, so who knows?"

She smiled at him. "Totally understand. We'll probably be in-laws first, anyway, so we'll at least have to learn how to get along one way or another. I think we should work on being friends and tolerating each other _looong_ before thinking about that."

"Totally." Alvin nodded in agreement. He stared at the campfire a few moments before adding, "But I'm still glad that you escaped from pharaoh. I mean, if not, I would have to go down there and go all Moses on him and demand him to 'Let my people go!' or something like that." He shook his finger to emphasize his point, while Brittany laughed at his antics.

There was silence for a few moments as the two of them couldn't decide whether to look at the campfire, the Eastern horizon where the sun was rising, or at each other's reaction to it all.

Brittany placed her left hand on top of his right hand, giving him a light pat as she did so. "I'm glad you're OK, Alvin - not just your arm after that nasty cut - but, you know, all those brotherly spats and stuff. I hope you guys are still OK. As much fun as the friendly competition with you guys can be now and then, I enjoy being on the same team like one big happy family even more."

"Me too." He chuckled. "I like having you for competition - I mean, you are a worthy opponent and all..." He turned his right hand so that his palm was now up and against her palm. He took a deep breath, allowing his fingers to wrap around her hand before adding, "But I guess even more than having you for competition, I like having you for company. You get me on a level no one else does." He smiled at her.

She gave his hand a gentle but reassuring squeeze as they watched the dawn breaking. "Wow! Watching the sunrise is a new thing for me. I've seen lots of sunsets, but somehow a sunrise is its own special experience." She let out a hum to herself.

"It's really something, isn't it, Britt?" When Alvin didn't hear a response, he looked over at her. "Britt? Are you falling asleep on me?"

Her eyes were open, but she was staring straight ahead, as if in a trance. But when she heard Alvin calling for her, she snapped out of it. "Oh, sorry. I guess I just zoned out there for a moment."

"It's OK, I'm starting to get tired, too." Alvin chuckled, but glanced back at her with concern, "Or is there something else you wanna talk about?"

"Well..." She seemed a little nervous. "I'm not even sure how to ask this question..." She made a motion with her free right hand toward the loincloth Alvin was wearing. "I'm pretty sure that's not your usual underwear, so...how did the villagers get that on you without, uh, 'messing with you'?"

"Oh, that!" Alvin laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck with his left hand while slightly blushing. "Well, funny thing, I barely remember being naked or anything...it was, one minute I was wearing my usual street clothes, negotiating with the natives about giving them some of our clothes, shoes, and our stereo in exchange for Theodore. The next minute, I remember waking up next to Simon, tied against the wall of one of the village huts, we were both wearing loincloths. Simon explained to me later that they used some kinda poison darts dipped in a type of liquid sleeping drug to knock us out for a few hours, while they took our stuff and changed our clothes. But I don't think anyone 'messed with us' like you said, since they also would want their potential 'sacrifices' to be...you know, 'pure'...'undefiled'..."

Brittany giggled, "In other words, they wouldn't have wanted to sacrifice you if you weren't a virgin?"

There went Alvin's left hand nervously rubbing the back of his neck again. "And...you said it." He chuckled. "But, you know, I'm sure the pharaoh wouldn't have wanted to marry you if _you_ weren't a virgin."

" _Touché_." Brittany stopped her laughter. "Sorry to bring up...well, such an awkward subject. I'm sure this was the conversation you always dreamed of having with me."

Alvin smiled and rolled his eyes, "Well, it does beat getting eaten by crocodiles or great white sharks. I'm glad to know we've both lived through such intense situations. And now we can both feel like we've accomplished something because of them."

He glanced at her while gently stroking the space between the fingers of her hand he was still holding. He even smiled to himself a little, glad that he had felt brave enough to try holding Brittany's hand, and glad she had reciprocated his affection. She returned the smile, and started letting her fingers dance intertwined with his for a few moments. The rush that it gave Alvin sent a shiver down his spine.

"Are you cold in just that diaper, Alvin? We may have an extra blanket somewhere." Brittany looked like she may get up.

"Oh, I'm fine by the fire." Alvin squeezed her hand as if to say, " _Please don't get up and let go of my hand._ " He then paused when she remained seated next to him, looking over at her, "And this is _not_ a diaper."

Brittany giggled, "Oh, I'm sorry, your 'jockstrap'? Wait, your 'G-string'? I feel like I should do this..." She took one of the bills out of the back of the Jeanette doll they opened earlier, and tucked it into the strap of the loincloth on Alvin's right hip.

They both laughed. When they calmed down, Alvin corrected her, "I believe it's called a 'loincloth'. But 'G-string' was a lot funnier."

There was another moment of silence, but there was nothing awkward about it as the two friends just leaned against each other and continued to hold hands.

"Brittany?" Alvin glanced over to see if she was still awake.

"Yeah?" Came a sleepy reply.

He continued, "Before we fall asleep, do you at least wanna lie down?"

"Maybe." She stretched. "I guess if our siblings can work out a sleeping arrangement, so can we. I'll get that extra blanket, if you wanna find a comfy spot."

She was gone barely a minute, but Alvin realized he was already missing her. He found a sandy area near their feet that would work. Brittany finally returned with a blanket to spread so they could sleep on it. His tail perked up when she approached. She noticed, and was secretly flattered, but just acted as if she didn't notice as she continued opening the folded blanket and spreading it picnic-style. Alvin helped her with situating some of the blanket.

Before they laid on the blanket to sleep, Alvin wrapped his arms around her. "I would give you this as a 'nighty-night hug', but it's more of a good-morning hug."

"That's OK, Alvin." She hugged him back. "I hope you sleep well, anyways, my friend."

"You too, my friend. _Mmmm..._ " He gave a vocal sound with a friendly squeeze. "And, Brittany, I just want you to know that if the race was still on, I would rather lose _to_ you than lose you."

She pecked a quick but soft kiss to Alvin's temple, "And, Alvin, I would rather have you lose _to_ me than lose you."

"What?" He shot her a confused look.

She giggled, "OK, OK, I was kidding. I meant whatever sweet thing you just said to me, but I'm just so tired right now." She yawned.

Alvin shared the yawn. "But one more thing before sleep. Brittany, I don't think that I really got the chance to properly thank you for saving my life."

She paused, just staring at him for a moment, pretty sure he had already said his fair share of 'thank yous'. Instead, she found that his eyes were locked on hers, but slowly shutting as his nose moved closer to hers. His moistened upper lip brushed against hers, and she closed her eyes to soak in the moment as she kissed him back. He seemed to relax his hands along her mid-back, while she relaxed her hands around his shoulders and upper back. She lost track of time, even wondering if, for a brief moment, she had fallen asleep.

While his lips were still on hers, he whispered, "Thank you, Brittany...my princess and my hero."

"Oh, Alvin..." She whispered while her lips were still on his.

He rested his forehead against hers, and took a moment to smile while just looking into her eyes.

The moment was interrupted by a bird flapping its wings in a nearby tree. They both gasped and looked in its direction, to make sure there were no other dangers. Also, they glanced at the tent to see if any of their siblings were awake and had possibly seen them kissing.

"Whew!" They both sighed with relief.

"I think I'm gonna lie down, now." Brittany resolved sleepily, crouching down to the blanket.

Alvin sat on the blanket, rolling onto his back in a supine position with his hat bill pulled down so that it shaded his eyes. His face turned to his right in Brittany's direction, "And, this goes without saying that we keep that kiss a secret between the two of us. Right, Britt?"

"Understood. What happens in Fiji stays in Fiji." She nodded as she tried to get comfortable sleeping on the left side of her body. She still hadn't quite figured out whether she wanted to sleep with her head pillowed on her left arm. That would run the risk of her whole arm falling asleep. If she slept on just her left hand, she would risk waking up with her neck in pain.

Alvin noticed her struggle, so he extended his right arm, wrapping it around her shoulders, and pulling her closer. "Come here."

Her head was soon pillowed on Alvin's chest and right shoulder, with his right arm protectively resting on her right shoulder. "Better?"

"Much." She nodded, her hair slightly tickling Alvin's bare skin, but he didn't mind. "Thanks, Alvin."

She didn't hear much of a response, except for feeling a rise and fall to the steady rhythm of Alvin's breathing, so she assumed he had found sleep. She smiled and used her right hand to pat Alvin's side, just at the bottom of his rib cage. Alvin's snoring was actually kinda cute! Brittany smiled as she listened to it like a lullaby, while her eyes sleepily watched his abdomen rise and fall.

One other thing that fascinated her about Alvin that she had never really noticed before - the fine fur on his belly. She noticed that at his chest and upper abdomen, the fur converged from his left and right sides to form a ridge where the two sides met. It reminded Brittany of two smaller rivers converging into one bigger river. Her fingers absent-mindedly followed the "flow" of his fur from his right side to the middle. She continued following this ridge of fur as it flowed downward towards Alvin's navel. All the while she wondered if this ridge of fur was just an Alvin thing, or if it was a male humanoid chipmunk thing, since she knew that the belly fur on herself and her sisters was much finer and shorter than this - just peach fuzz, but it didn't form a ridge in the middle like this. And she hadn't really noticed this on Simon or Theodore yet, not that she had ever thought to look.

Brittany's fingers stopped when they reached Alvin's mid-abdomen, but more unconsciously than anything else. For directly on the other side of his belly-button, the furry ridge seemed to flow from the other direction, as if it were a mirror image of the flow of fur on top. It still piqued her curiosity, so her finger stroked a quarter-inch at a time as she followed this ridge of fine fur to the edge of the loincloth.

Alvin pulled his legs up to his stomach and giggled. "Britt, that tickles!"

"Oh, sorry, Alvin," she yawned, "Your fur is just so soft, and my hand just hasn't found a place to rest yet."

He took the back of her right hand in his left hand, and just held it to his upper abdomen. "Well, if your hand wants to rest any lower, you are gonna have to take me out to a nice dinner."

"I didn't mean to..." She started, still sleepily.

Alvin interrupted her, "It's OK, Britt. I was actually kind of enjoying that - but don't tell anyone about that, either." He gave her right hand a soft squeeze with his left hand, and lightly stroked her right shoulder with his right hand.

"Another thing to add to our list of secrets..." Brittany mumbled as she closed her eyes.

* * *

 **A/N:** I would like to dedicate the part about the "Pooping Simon Doll" to one of my friends from my small group at church, Devan. He's currently college-aged (early 20s), but at the time we shared the joke together, he was about 8-11 years old (Alvin's age) and I was in college. The joke was that he would hold a basketball behind his back, squat, then make some grunting and bearing-down sounds, then drop the basketball with a loud farting sound, and often he would give a huge sigh of relief afterwards. He made me laugh back then, and it still makes me laugh. To this day, I have not outgrown bathroom humor.

The "perky tail" is nothing dirty. Theodore even does it toward the end of the 2015 Nick cartoon episode "Candy Confessions". When Alvin apologizes to a mopey Theodore, his tail perks up when his spirits perk up.

Hope you enjoyed the "Alvittany Affection" in this chapter!


	5. Epilogue

**The Missed Adventure**

 **About This Story:** Takes place in "The Chipmunk Adventure", after the Chipettes rescued the Chipmunks from being sacrificed in Fiji. Alvin and Brittany get a chance to talk about the trip. Even though the movie came out in 1987, some references are made to technology, events, and other things that didn't exist until the 21st century. Just for consistency, I'm going to write it (and imagine it) as if "The Chipmunk Adventure" happened in my current favorite upgraded and present Chipmunk "universe" (which is the 2015 Nickelodeon cartoon) - "The Chipmunk Adventure 2.0", if you will. Age-wise, I'll say they are 8 years old. I don't own any part of the Chipmunk franchise, just borrowing them from Nickelodeon, Janice Karman,  & Ross Bagdasarian, their family, & their company.

 **About This Chapter:** Rated G-PG. Some bathroom humor is back in this one. Plenty of sweet family moments, though.

 **Pairings:** Alvin/Brittany

* * *

 **Epilogue**

It was nearly noon that day in the Chipmunk's and Chipette's campsite before anyone stirred.

"Theodore, if you need to go," Simon began, "There is a place behind those bushes that Alvin and I have set apart as 'the boys' room'. And don't forget to wash your hands in the stream afterwards."

"But not upstream from our drinking water, please." Added Jeanette.

"I'll show you a good spot to wash your hands after I'm done using 'the girls' room' behind those other bushes." Eleanor volunteered as she emerged from the tent flap to join the others.

As the two little ones went off to "conduct business", Simon glanced over at Jeanette. "Did Alvin or Brittany come into the tent last night?"

"I thought I heard someone at the door at one point, but I was drifting in and out of sleep at the time, and I could've just as easily imagined it or dreamed it. They sure didn't stay in the tent long, if they did come in."

"I sure hope nothing happened to them." Simon gasped, looking around with a worried expression. He looked like he wanted to go look for them, so he started searching in the direction of the balloon and "the boys' room".

Jeanette headed in the direction of the campfire. "Wait, Simon! Look at this..." She whispered, muffling a giggle, as she pulled out her phone to snap a picture of something.

Simon made his way over to her. "Awww!" He suppressed some laughter of his own when he saw what Jeanette pointed out. Alvin was lying on his back, with Brittany's head pillowed on the right side of his chest, with his bandaged right arm around her, and his left hand was holding her right hand to his stomach. Their breathing was very steady, so it was obvious they were still sleeping.

"Did you get a picture of that?" Simon asked in a whisper toward Jeanette.

"Yeah!" She nodded.

"Good." He nodded. "I think we should just let them sleep for now."

"Yeah," Jeanette agreed. "I'm gonna try to find stuff for breakfast, since Ellie and Theo will probably be hungry when they get back. I'm kinda hungry, too, but I wanna brush my teeth first."

"I hear ya." Simon had caught up with her on the way back to the balloon. "And, Jeanette, I'd really hate to ask this, but since my brothers and I lost our luggage..."

Jeanette already had a feeling as to what he was gonna ask. "It's OK if you use my toothbrush for the rest of this trip, Simon. I mean, you don't look sick or anything. And if I'm sharing my toothbrush with anyone, you seem trustworthy enough."

"Thank you, Jeanette!" Simon sighed with relief. "I'm glad I didn't even have to ask you. This is kinda humiliating for a 'cleanliness enthusiast' such as myself to have to ask something like this. Of course, Alvin just calls me a 'neat freak'."

They both shared a laugh as Jeanette started brushing her teeth. "I would've done the same for my sisters." She shrugged around a mouthful of toothpaste.

"How did you know that I was even gonna ask you about using your toothbrush?" Simon asked her once she spat out her mouthful on the ground, so as not to pollute the stream.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "Just 'woman's intuition' I guess." She handed him her toothbrush after cleaning it off.

"Thanks." He accepted the toothbrush and proceeded to brush his teeth.

"I feel like we've become animals on this trip." Jeanette chuckled.

After Simon spat out his mouthful of toothpaste and started washing Jeanette's toothbrush, he laughed. "Yeah, what little dignity I had sure went out the window, or whatever."

"How's it going, guys?" Eleanor almost startled them when she and Theodore appeared. She started brushing her teeth with her own toothbrush.

Simon chuckled, "Well, Eleanor, you caught me at a very low point, since I just had to brush my teeth by borrowing someone else's toothbrush."

"Are you saying Jeanette has cooties?" She asked as she hacked and spat. She then washed off her toothbrush and handed it off to Theodore.

"Well, no..." Simon rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "The fact that it was Jeanette's toothbrush made the whole experience of borrowing a toothbrush seem not-so-bad. I just thought I would go through life without having to share a toothbrush with anyone else."

Around a mouthful of toothpaste, Theodore said, "But, Simon, you know that I use your toothbrush all the time."

Simon just stared at him in shock, as the girls laughed.

Theodore stared back at his older brother. "Uh... You _do_ know that I sometimes use your toothbrush. Right, Simon?"

Simon groaned in exasperation.

"What's the big deal, Simon?" Eleanor asked. "I mean, earlier on this trip I couldn't find my toothbrush for a few days, it was just lost in my suitcase somewhere, so Jeanette let me use hers." She patted her sister's arm to show her gratitude. Then she realized something. "And...that would also be the same one that Simon used."

Simon took a deep breath before he shook his head and smiled. "It's OK, Theodore." He patted his little brother's shoulder. "But in the future, please ask beforehand. Okay?"

Theodore nodded, "Sure, Simon. And maybe it would help if I turned on more lights while I'm in the bathroom, since sometimes a blue toothbrush looks like a green one. I didn't mean to use your toothbrush without asking. I know this is a lot for a neat freak - er, I mean a 'cleanliness enthusiast' like yourself, to take in on an empty stomach."

"It's cool, Theo." Simon laughed. "I've already realized I'm _waaaay_ out of my comfort zone on this trip."

"But Theo had a good point, though." Eleanor chimed in. "I think it's time to find something to eat for breakfast, or lunch, or whatever it is now."

"Before we go back over there," Jeanette pulled out her phone to show Eleanor and Theodore. "Let me show you this..."

"Awww!" The two little chipmunks giggled in unison when they saw the picture of Alvin and Brittany cuddling.

"We were just gonna let them sleep." Simon explained. "But I wonder if they are still asleep."

"Send us a copy of that pic, Jeanette." Eleanor whispered.

"Already on it..." Jeanette smiled as she swiped her phone. "I don't wanna risk Alvin or Brittany deleting this pic, if they see it."

"Great!" Theodore whispered, giving her a thumbs-up. "As soon as I get home and get a new phone, that pic will be waiting for me in the cloud."

The four of them made their way over to the food cooler to get some snacks. They returned to the campfire, where Alvin and Brittany were still sleeping exactly where they left them.

Jeanette waved a banana she peeled just a few inches away from Alvin's and Brittany's noses. "Wake up, sleepy-heads..."

The two sleeping friends started groaning and blinking their eyes. They glanced at each other and let out a gag.

"Ugh, is that my morning breath or yours?" Alvin groaned.

"Sorry, I can taste it and smell it, too." Brittany groaned.

"Morning, Beautiful!" Alvin managed to laugh.

Brittany's hair was all askew as she sat up and stretched. "Very funny." She rolled her eyes at Alvin, whose hair was also a mess with more of a cowlick to his bangs than usual as his hat fell off when he sat up. Brittany playfully fluffed his bangs with her fingers.

"Did you guys sleep OK out here?" Eleanor asked in her motherly manner.

"Yeah, I guess." Brittany shrugged at first, but then stood up in somewhat of a hurry. "But now I need to pee! Well...that's not _all_ I need to do, but right now peeing is just my number one priority."

The others laughed. As she headed off to "the girls' room", she briefly stopped and added, "No pun intended, of course. It's still too early for that."

"Who has the world's tiniest bladder?" Eleanor said in a sing-song voice. She continued singing, "Brittany does!"

"I kinda need to go, too." Alvin stood up, and at first looked like he may follow Brittany.

"Uh, Alvin, 'the boys' room' is thattaway..." Theodore pointed.

"Right!" Alvin muttered as he changed direction.

The others continued laughing.

"Who feels like fried banana, toast, and mango applesauce?" Eleanor asked as she pulled some ingredients from the pantry and food cooler.

"Me!" Theodore enthusiastically waved his hands. "And I'll help you, Ellie."

"Thanks, Theo." She beamed.

"I'll re-light the fire." Simon volunteered, removing his glasses and using them to concentrate the sun's rays to a dry and un-charred part of the wood.

"I'll get some more wood and kindling." Jeanette volunteered.

After about fifteen minutes, everyone returned to the campfire for an afternoon breakfast. Simon and Jeanette were tending the fire, and setting up pillows and blankets for the others to sit comfortably. Theodore and Eleanor were bringing food and utensils, and Alvin and Brittany were returning from the stream.

"Oh, Simon..." Alvin started in a sing-song voice, "I just did something that would totally gross you out."

"Please tell me you washed your hands after using the bathroom." Simon grimaced.

"Oh, that I did." Alvin laughed as he playfully sat down next to Simon. "But I meant something else - I had to share a toothbrush with Brittany!"

"You're welcome, Alvin." Brittany said as she sat down between Alvin and Eleanor.

"Oh, yeah, thanks for sharing your dainty pink toothbrush with me, Britt." Alvin looked over at her. "My teeth have never felt more manly in all my life." They shared a laugh.

Simon sighed, "That's cool, Alvin, I'm over it. I mean, Jeanette was kind and understanding enough to let me use her toothbrush."

"And Ellie shared hers with me." Theodore added.

"Sorry, Alvin," Eleanor giggled. "You've snoozed through our moment of giving Simon a hard time about having to share a toothbrush."

"Besides, Alvin," Jeanette began without looking up from her food, "I'm sure sharing a toothbrush with Brittany is really not much different from kissing her."

At this, Alvin and Brittany both froze mid-bite with their eyes wide open. Without turning their heads, their eyes rolled over to look at each other. They could feel their faces growing redder every second.

"But, like that would ever happen. Ha, ha!" Jeanette continued after swallowing her bite of food.

Alvin and Brittany quickly glanced at each other, and quickly glanced around the circle, noticing that the others were all looking at their food and not paying them any attention. They both released a breath they weren't aware they were holding. Both of them were relieved that their secret was still safe between the two of them.

"I'm just glad that you guys didn't kill each other last night." Simon stated. "And I'm glad the natives didn't kidnap you or attack you, either."

"Speaking of being attacked..." Eleanor began. "Alvin, what happened to your arm? I'm pretty sure it wasn't bandaged last night when we went to sleep."

"Spear-fishing accident." He calmly stated around a bite of food.

"Alvin, you don't spear-fish." Simon rolled his eyes.

"OK, OK." Alvin began, "That's only partly true. Just dropped a spear that sliced my arm, but not while fishing. Britt cleaned it off and bandaged it."

"Good bandaging job, Brittany." Simon admired her handiwork, since he was sitting closest to Alvin's right side.

"Yeah." Eleanor nudged her sister while looking over at Alvin. "How does your arm feel now?"

"It's OK, now, I guess." Alvin looked at his bandage. "I even forget about it most of the time. I only really think about it or feel anything there at all, every...I dunno...every half-hour or so. But thanks for asking, Eleanor."

"It still might be a good idea for you to get a tetanus shot once we get back home." Jeanette added.

Alvin winked at Brittany, "You sure called it!"

She giggled and winked back at him.

"Speaking of getting back home..." Simon began, glancing around the circle. "Since this whole race is pretty much over, I'm all for heading home, but treating the rest of our journey as if we were not racing opponents, but just having a family vacation."

"I second that." Jeanette raised her hand.

Alvin chuckled. "Simon, you're just anxious to get home and use your own toothbrush, you big neat freak."

"It's 'cleanliness enthusiast', Alvin, thank you very much." Simon glared at his brother.

"If it were a real vacation," Brittany interrupted, "I'd wanna slow down, relax, and take our time to enjoy it. But I understand if we wanna get back sooner so no one has to share a toothbrush. Oh! How I wish we had teamed up like this sooner!"

"And last night we established that if you and Alvin weren't so busy fighting over an apple, and had let Jeanette and me talk, we _would've_ teamed up sooner." Simon almost sounded angry, but he corrected himself. "Eh...sorry, Brittany, I didn't mean for that to sound like I was mad at you or anything. I mean, 'live and learn'. Huh?"

"It's cool, Simon." Brittany smiled.

Simon continued. "I guess I'm just frustrated with this whole toothbrush-sharing, even though I am grateful to Jeanette for letting me borrow hers." He smiled over at Jeanette, who beamed at him in return. He turned to look around the circle again. "Just nobody get sick, OK?"

" _Ah-choo!_ " Alvin pretended to sneeze on Simon, but spoiled it by laughing. He gave Simon a noogie while he continued laughing along with everyone else, as Simon rolled his eyes.

"You've been quiet, T-Bear..." Eleanor looked over at her friend Theodore, using her personal nickname for him. "Got anything to add?"

He nodded around a mouthful. "This is good breakfast or lunch, or whatever we wanna call it." He smiled at her.

"Well, you helped me get it ready." She smiled back. "And you know what they say - breakfast by any other name...still tastes just as good." They shared a laugh.

"Maybe we should stopover some place where there is a town," Jeanette suggested. "That way we can try stocking up on food items, and maybe even buy some toothbrushes and stuff. With the six of us traveling together, we'll need twice as many supplies as when it was just us three."

"How would we pay for it?" Simon asked, "With the Furschtiens' diamond-smuggling money?"

"It's not like there isn't plenty more where that came from." Alvin added. "I mean, the Furschtiens are filthy, stinkin' rich. They won't miss a few dollars, or even a few hundred dollars. Or a few gems, if we wanna pawn off any."

Theodore chimed in. "But that still doesn't sound right."

Brittany clarified, "But remember, the Furschtiens said they would 'supply all the necessary provisions for the trip', and the money inside the dolls is one way they are funding us, if you wanna think of it that way..."

Theodore thought for a moment. "I still might regret this, but OK."

Alvin chuckled, "Welcome to the dark side, Ted. I feel like I'm training my own 'bad-boy superhero sidekick'. This time, though, I didn't have to bribe you with candy."

Theodore rolled his eyes.

Eleanor wondered aloud, "I wonder if the Furschtiens will still give us the hundred thousand dollars they promised when we return."

Jeanette raised a finger as she swallowed a bite of food. "Maybe there's an even bigger reward for turning the Furschtiens in."

"Yeah..." Simon thought about it. "Instead of returning to the Furschtiens' mansion, we could go to the airport first, where we could get a hold of the proper authorities and turn in the dolls as evidence."

"Since the race is bogus," added Jeanette. "And since we're treating the rest of the trip like a family vacation where we are all on one team, we could split the reward money fifty-fifty."

"Ha! No more asking Dave for an advance on my allowance!" Alvin smiled.

"You know the money will go straight into our trust funds, and we'll never see it, Alvin." Simon rolled his eyes.

Alvin's demeanor saddened. "Boy, I miss Dave. I never thought I would miss him so much, but I do."

Brittany placed a hand on his left shoulder. "It's OK, Alvin, I miss him, too."

Simon placed a hand on Alvin's right shoulder. "I also miss our father. And for your sake, as well as all of ours, I hope we can make it back home before he gets home."

"Maybe we could take Miss Miller out for pizza or something when we get back." Theodore suggested. "Especially if the Furschtiens are buying! I still feel bad for tricking her into letting us go..."

"Teddy-Boy, you bad-boy, you!" Alvin giggled.

Eleanor leaned over and whispered to Theodore, "That's OK, Theo, there's just something about a bad-boy..." She winked at him.

Simon nudged Alvin to be quiet, accidentally elbowing his injured forearm.

" _Oww!_ " Alvin hissed.

"Oh! I'm sorry about that, Bro." Simon gasped, rubbing Alvin's arm empathetically. "I forgot all about that."

Alvin took a deep breath. "That's OK, Si. I almost forgot about it, too. Look at you, all helping me cope with this injury. Can you believe that last night I was convinced that you wanted to kill me?"

"What?" Simon shot him a puzzled look. "Sure I say that and feel that way from time to time... But, Alvin, you know that I would never want to have to explain to Dave that I let anything happen to you or Theodore, much less that I actually _did_ anything to hurt you or Theodore. You're my brothers, and I love you guys."

"Aww, Simon..." Alvin leaned into Simon's embrace. And Theodore even walked over to them so he could share in the brotherly hug.

"Aww..." Eleanor looked at Brittany, who placed an arm around her little sister, pulling her into a hug. Without even looking up, the two of them extended their outside arms to welcome Jeanette to join them in a sisterly hug.

After a few moments of each set of siblings sharing a hug, the guys felt some other hands on their backs.

"We want you guys to know that we love you, too." Jeanette said as she patted Alvin and Theodore. They extended their arms to welcome her into the hug.

"Yeah," Brittany added between Simon and Theodore. "We like seeing you guys getting along with each other." As they sandwich-hugged her, she made a small note to herself that they did in fact have small ridges of fur down their middles just like Alvin did. Huh? Maybe it was a male humanoid chipmunk thing after all. Of course Simon's fur was darker, while Theodore's fur was lighter. It kind of matched the hair on their heads and the stripes on their backs, but it was a little finer.

"And sharing the love..." Eleanor struggled with hugging Simon and Alvin, since they were both much taller than she was. But they reached down to her and held her up between the two of them. Of course Simon had to do most of the holding, since that was Alvin's injured arm, but he didn't mind.

"And we love you girls, too!" Simon squeezed Brittany and Eleanor, since his arms were already around them. He also smiled at Jeanette across the circle from him.

"You complete us!" Alvin gave Eleanor and Jeanette a quick squeeze, while winking across the circle at Brittany.

"I like having sisters as well as brothers in my family." Theodore squealed while hugging Jeanette and Brittany. They both came down to his level to sandwich-hug him, since he was a little shorter. He also shared a smile across the circle with Eleanor. "Whaddaya know? My favorite kinda sandwich - a family sandwich!" As the others laughed, he added somberly, "Only it's missing Dave..."

"Even though I'm not usually much of a hugger," began Simon, "I don't want this group hug to end!"

"Me neither!" Eleanor giggled. "Love is even stronger than Simon's germo-phobia." Everyone laughed.

Theodore added, "When Simon says he isn't a hugger, I don't believe a word of it any more than when he says he will never share a toothbrush." They all continued to laugh.

"And don't even get him started about sharing other personal hygiene items like deodorant or chapstick." Alvin pretended to glare at Simon.

"OK, OK," Simon rolled his eyes. "But as soon as we end this hug, I say we pack up camp, while Jeanette checks her phone for the nearest town, and we head there for supplies and stuff. Who's up for that?"

"Yeah!" The others replied in unison as they separated to pack up camp.

That hug was exactly what everyone needed to recharge their batteries before they made their journey home, this time as one team, and as a family.

* * *

THE END

* * *

 **A/N:** Credit where credit is due. When Jeanette says "...we've become animals..." And where Simon uses his glasses to re-light the campfire with the sun. Both references to "Chipwrecked". Although the glasses starting a fire was also in the 2016 Nick cartoon episode "I Will Survive". I also liked writing Theodore so he felt like any problem could be solved with the right food.

Also some "shout-outs". The part about shared toothbrushes is inspired by some college friends back in 2003 when I went on a Spring Break Campaign (what Lubbock Christian University called their Spring Break "mini-mission trips") to Albany, New York (from Lubbock, Texas) via Greyhound bus lines. It was an educational experience that could be called "Bus Travel 101". There were 7 of us in this traveling group, and we had so many inside jokes that we collected along this trip. Well, 2 of our group members, David and Shanna, lost their luggage. I mean, on airplane trips with over 50 people, maybe 1 person might lose their luggage. But 2 out of 7 losing luggage is a much bigger deal! And one of our inside jokes to add to our list was, "Blessing of the day: David got a toothbrush!" It was definitely a bonding experience, since we slept in weird positions on buses, and the trip was sandwiched by 48-hour stretches of not being able to shower, and wearing clothes pulled out of our laundry bags. Of course, some of that is life for typical college students anyway.

I like seeing the Chipmunks and Chipettes all hanging out together as a group of friends, and like one big happy family. (But sure, it's fun to explore the potential romantic-ish relationships as well as the over-all friendships.) It brings back so many happy memories of growing up and hanging out with my cousins on family trips, and goofing off together (the friendships, not the romance). And also some memories of being in a "social club" in college (basically like a sorority), and hanging out with the guys in our brother club. (Romantic relationships often happened as our clubs spent so much time together. Many of my club sisters married guys in our brother club.) Our brother-sister club relationships were pretty tight, so it was a blast!


End file.
